thebigrooster

On our upcoming sailing on the 30th, the showband show has not been an option to book so far.  There is a new production show, however, called "The Effectors:  The Origin Story" which is in preview mode.  We booked it one night.

5 hours ago, SUgwoz said:

Icon Udp seems like a tougher sell to me than Oasis Class. Would have been better if they had Central Park 150 and Giovanni Table vs. Kitchen. I have one free dinner from TA, got a cheap lunch from Black Friday deal. Along with more robust free options. I keep trying to find a way to justify it as I really do enjoy the speciality dining experience.

 

Pier 7 shifting to a flat fee also made it seem less lucrative. $12.99 on cruise planner for Brunch seems like a pretty solid price particular with the kids eat free for mixing in another meal on the trip. 

Pier 7 switched to a flat fee?  So is it order anything on the menu for $12.99 then?

Entertainment reservations for 3/30 opened up this afternoon on the app.  I still don't see it online but I was able to book through the app.

I'm on the 3/30 sailing as well and have been looking every day.  Based on the past cadence, they've opened entertainment for 2 sailings at a time, every other week.  The 3/16 sailing shows entertainment options so we should be getting close.

We're on the March 30th sailing as well.  I've been tracking the entertainment schedule closely which is currently posted up through the March 2nd sailing.  Sailings after that are not posted yet but the March 9th sailing should post any time now.  I will say, the entertainment schedule has changed a fair amount from week to week so far...I'm guessing they're still settling in to a schedule that works.  For reference, however, here's the March 2nd schedule which is also a Western Caribbean itinerary:

Wizard of Oz:  Day 1, 8:30; Day 2, 9:30; Day 6, 6:30; Day 7, 8:15

Aqua Action:  Day 1, 8:00 & 10:15; Day 3, 7:00 & 9:15; Day 4, 7:00 & 9:15; Day 6, 8:15 & 10:30

Starburst Elemental:  Day 2, 8:00 & 10:15; Day 3, 7:00; Day 4, 7:30 & 9:45; Day 7, 7:00 & 9:15

Headliner 1:  Day 3, 8:00 & 10:45

Headliner 2:  Day 5, 7:00 & 9:00

Showband!:  Day 4, 8:30 & 10:45

Comedy Shows:  Days 1, 3, 6 offer 2 shows at 8:30 & 10:00; Days 2 and 5 offer 3 shows at 8:00, 10:00, and 11:59

Again, the schedule has been changing week to week.  But hopefully this gives you a general idea, DownRanger.  See you on the 30th!  🙂

They cancelled the Key for the inaugural sailing but haven't heard if that's the case since.  We reserved the key for the March 30 sailing but would love to know the experience of others on the recent sailings.

3 hours ago, Ozark_Kid said:

Not sure if you have ever noticed but you can pull up on the app any ship and date you want so you can look at the January 27th if you want.  Do understand that things can and probably will change by March 30th.   

Hope you enjoy the Icon.  March 30th may seem far off but it will be here soon!

I did not know that!  Thank you for the tip!  Totally understand things can change...just wanted to get an idea.

11 hours ago, Ozark_Kid said:

We are cruising the Inaugural January 27.  You can see the Showtimes on the app now.  They came out yesterday. 

Sorry, I wasn't very specific.  We're not going until March 30 so its not in my app yet.  Just wondering the entertainment schedule from someone going sooner as I'm a hyper-planner.  🙂  Thanks!

Anyone going on Icon soon have a list of showtimes?

It's just a sticker regardless of when you buy it. If you want to use OBC towards the package, just wait to buy it on board. Also, there can be taxes for ships sailing out of foreign ports so probably better to buy it ahead of time in that case. On Allure, there were dozens of people wandering around trying to sell drink packages the day we boarded so its easy to buy on board too.

Here's a post with the new Chop's menu attached:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showpost.php?p=42678037&postcount=21

At least on the May 4th Allure cruise, that menu hadn't been rolled out yet. It was still the "old" Chops menu but with 2 dry-aged steaks added that were available for the upcharge.

In my opinion, its not something worth a "dislike." They are just providing an option for people that might want a 28-day dry-aged steak. If you don't want that, no problem, there are several other steaks included in the Chops price including a fantastic filet. I have no problem with them providing choices.

FWIW was told by a bridge officer on our All Access Tour on Allure that she is rated for a category 5 hurricane. They'd never run it for passenger comfort as well as losing deck furniture but it's no problem for the ship. In fact, they had 60 foot seas in the North Sea during sea trials and couldn't even get her to list 5 degrees!

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It's GoGo Inflight. Works well. You can't stream video but is fine for browsing/email. I use it all the time on Alaska.

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The sink in your stateroom works great. 4900 tons of reverse-osmosis purified drinking water produced per day on Oasis/Allure! Same exact process as Aquafina.

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Did it on Allure 2 weeks ago and it was fantastic. Ours was the last sea day from 9:20 to about 1:00 but we had lots of questions. Make sure you have pants and close toed shoes. They don't make exceptions. Capris don't work either, ladies. About 20 people on the tour. Lots of walking so be prepared.

Let me know if you have other questions.

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My math is off in post above (was thinking wine which is $12) but you get the point. You pay the difference over $10. There are a handful of higher end scotches/cognacs that are more than$10 but not much.

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Ultimate package is the Premium Package plus the Royal Replenish package (that is, the combo of the highest alcohol and non-alcohol packages)

 

The Premium list is as follows: (with photo credit going to megacruiser from his Oasis review earlier this year)

 

This is old. As previous posters have stated, brands don't matter anymore. Price does. Anything up to $10 is included. If you want something more expensive, you pay the difference.

Johnny Walker Blue is $24. So you'd pay $12 with a package. Louis XIII is $160 in the Champagne Bar on Allure. You'd pay $148. Johnny Walker Gold is $10, you pay nothing. Etc. etc. Patron is definitely included in the packages. I had several!

I don't like to put anyone down, but realistically, do you think a horticulturalist is going to be the person we would go to for realistic information about ship construction and development?

No, I don't. Just passing along what he said. He obviously knew about Oasis 4. If you hear about Oasis 5 and 6 in the future, then he was right about that too. If not, he wasn't. :)

On the central park walking tour (fantastic) on our recent Allure cruise, the horticulturalist who's responsible for the maintenance of Central Park on both Oasis and Allure said they'll never build a larger ship.

What does he know, you ask? Fair question. But he was extremely knowledgeable about the Oasis ships and even told us about Oasis 4 about 4 days prior to the official announcement. He plans the central parks which are the most technically-challenging parts of Oasis class. He also strongly hinted at Oasis 5 and 6 so stay tuned...

Has anyone using the premium package dined at 150 Central park? I understand you pay the difference for the cocktails I will be doing this for their signature martini :). But for their wine list I know you can add the wine pairings for $55-75.00 Has anyone had trouble using their package on wine at this restaurant I have heard they charge more for wine here? Also can you cheat the system and pay the difference after the $12.00 allowance for a glass of wine? So still getting the extra $75 dollar experience without spending and extra $75?

 

Also if you buy the ultimate does this include the Starbucks on board? I love my Starbucks coffees :)

 

Your advice is much appreciated

 

Thanks!

The premium package works the same at 150 CP as anywhere else. For the wine pairing, which I did, I received 20% off so it cost $60 instead of $75 because I had the package. I wasn't expecting a discount so it was a nice surprise. None of the "paired" wines are available by the glass so there's no real "cheating the system". My wife had a couple of $16 glasses of wine and paid $4 each for them.

Starbucks is not included with any package.

Hope this answers your question.

Its just a cast change. They mentioned it on our May 4th sailing. Our sailing had the last showing of that particular cast of Chicago.

Speaking of which, a stage director we got to speak with on our All Access Tour said Chicago will be replaced "shortly" as the contract for the performance was up.

We had the premium package ($55) on our May 4th Allure cruise. We routinely ordered wine over $12 and only paid the difference. Also, I was never charged additional for any cocktail, including margaritas over $10. Also, we had to sign for everything we ordered every time. From drinks, to bottled water, to dt. cokes.

One interesting note: we were able to speak with one of the head bar managers on our All Access Tour. He said drink consumption was up 50%!! on Allure since implementation of these new drink packages. Its had a big impact on how they stock the ships, especially bottled water. Typical weekly consumption of bottled water on Allure was 5000 bottles per week. With the new packages, it's almost 9000. He said the packages are tremendously popular.

Compared to most things, they barely advertise this tour and yet they sell it out every cruise at $150 pp. They should probably test charging more.

That being said, the tour is fantastic. Ours was 3.5 hours and we met an executive chef, laundry manager, bar manager, stage director, head electrical engineer, head propulsion engineer, and 2 bridge officers and had ample opportunity to ask them questions. Well done.

I thought Chef Michael was on the Oasis and the lady chef was on Allure. I wonder if they switched places.

She's been gone awhile. Schwartz handles the CP 150's on both ships. The menu is the same on both ships and seems to change less frequently now.

You can book online in advance and the specialty dining packages will be offered online via your pre cruise planner

This is the last cruise that specialty dining packages are being offered on Oasis/Allure. They have been discontinued effective the next sailings. They are supposedly in the process of being "revamped" so stay tuned I guess...

Great review! Can't wait to board Allure in 4 days!!